Stockton council fills final vacancy

STOCKTON - The City Council late Wednesday filled its last vacancy, appointing Dyane Burgos, a county social worker on the verge of finishing her law degree who is no stranger to City Hall.

Scott Smith

STOCKTON - The City Council late Wednesday filled its last vacancy, appointing Dyane Burgos, a county social worker on the verge of finishing her law degree who is no stranger to City Hall.

Burgos, 29, takes the seat of Susan Eggman, who resigned in the middle of a four-year term upon winning her race for state Assembly. Burgos emerged from a pool of more than a dozen candidates who sought the council appointment.

The term begins immediately, and Burgos will represent council District 5 for the next two years, until Dec. 31, 2014, when she will have to run for election if she wishes to retain the seat.

Burgos joins the seven-member City Council that in the next two years will have to grapple with calming staggering street crime in Stockton and a fight against Wall Street creditors who seek to derail the city's bid to restructure in bankruptcy court.

In a public interview before the council, Burgos said she is ready to make tough decisions as they come her way.

"My decisions would be what's the best for the city of Stockton, no matter how painful that would be," she said.

"I have a lot of vision for Stockton."

A 2002 graduate of Bear Creek High School, Burgos holds a master's degree in social work from California State University, Stanislaus. She has worked since April for the San Joaquin County Human Services Agency.

She studies at Humphreys College Laurence Drivon School of Law, where she is three courses away from graduating.

She gained some insight into the politics of Stockton's City Hall during a 2010 summer internship with Eggman. Yet, she now becomes the freshman to her new colleagues Michael Tubbs, Moses Zapien and Mayor Anthony Silva, who were sworn into office Tuesday.

She is the only other woman on the council, with Kathy Miller, who is beginning her second term.

In total, 14 residents applied for the position. By Tuesday, 12 candidates appeared for the public interview process. After taking questions in the first round, Burgos made the runoff with teacher Christina Fugazi and businessman Michael Mareno.

In the final vote, Burgos won, saying she wishes to focus on revitalizing downtown Stockton with residents. She recognized that the last council's decision to seek Chapter 9 bankruptcy was difficult but necessary, she said.

"I don't think there's any shame in what we've done," she said.

"What's important now is not repeating (those same) mistakes."

Sparks flew between Mayor Silva and the other council members in a discussion over a possible conflict of interest for Burgos, whose mother, Tammy Hunt, works for the city's Human Resources Department. City staff concluded it would be a potential political conflict, but not one of legal concern.

City Manager Bob Deis offered his opinion, but Silva cut him off, saying he disagreed with Deis. Silva said he believed it would be a serious conflict and noted that the public is watching the council's every move.

"I thank the city manager for his opinion," Silva said. "But I disagree with him."

Other council members rolled their eyes, and Miller turned the discussion to Silva, saying she felt a larger problem exists with a member of the panel who is on the board of an organization that receives city grant money.

She was referring to Silva's position as executive director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Stockton.

"We need to be on the up and up," Silva said before the final vote. "People would be concerned if one of our parents worked for the city manager - plain and simple. I can't believe you guys don't see it."